Carbonization is often exothermic, which means that it could in principle be made self-sustaining and be used as a source of energy which does not produce carbon dioxide. (See .) In the case of glucose, the reaction releases about 237 calories per gram.

When biomaterial is exposed to sudden searing heat (as in the case of an atomic bomb explosion or pyroclastic flow from a volcano, for instance), it can be carbonized extremely quickly, turning it into solid carbon. In the destruction of Herculaneum by a volcano, many organic objects such as furniture were carbonized by the intense heat.